


Calling My Name, Say It Again

by peachiexxx



Series: tommy-centric drabbles [1]
Category: Video Blogging RPF
Genre: Angst, Family Dynamics, Fluff, Hugs, Hurt/Comfort, Tommy needs a hug, Tubbo is doing his best, also warning for (implied) parental neglect/abuse, warning for described injury!!
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-23
Updated: 2020-11-24
Packaged: 2021-03-09 19:22:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,625
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27681403
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/peachiexxx/pseuds/peachiexxx
Summary: Tommy finds himself lost and confused, and can only think of one person to turn to.title from "I Still Adore You" by the oozes
Relationships: No Romantic Relationship(s), Toby Smith | Tubbo & TommyInnit
Series: tommy-centric drabbles [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2024233
Comments: 6
Kudos: 215





	1. 1

**Author's Note:**

> check tags for content warnings!  
> also this was written on a complete whim

_How did I get here?_

The question repeated over and over in his head. It was one of the few thoughts he had managed to fully been able to comprehend over the constant aching pain surging in his abdomen and temple.

Yet no matter how much the question repeated itself, he couldn't think of a good answer. Or, at the very least, he couldn't think of a _reasonable_ one. 

Tommy slowly opened his eyes into a squint, trying to bring himself back to reality. As his vision grew less and less blurry, memories of what had happened to him only moments before became surging back in a whirlwind of confusion.

It had been night- maybe around 9:00 PM? He had been upset with his parents. He couldn't clearly remember _why_ , but the specifics probably didn't really matter. In his rush of anger, he had left his house to blow off some air. He had quickly shoved on a warm hoodie before beginning to get as far away from his home as he could. Judging from the lack of response or noise from where he has fled, his parents had either failed to notice or simply thought him leaving for the night was for the best, as well.

What happened afterwards didn't matter too much. Tommy quickly had disconnected from reality, caught up in his own storm of emotions- to the point where he hadn't realized how long he had been walking- or, really, even, how far from home he has gotten (easily out of his town).

Upon noticing this, he hadn't felt exactly upset- just... numb. This is what he had wanted, after all, right? To get as far away from home as possible. That had been his decision, and he'd have to face the consequences whenever he decided to walk back to face his parents.

In fact, Tommy even found him enjoying himself. The sky was a whirlwind of stars, swirling around in a chaotic mess of the unspoken monologue that Tommy was having with himself.

Coincidentally, he found himself sauntering into a park. It was completely devoid of other humans, with a clearing in between trees containing several benches and water fountains. The leaves of the towering trees surrounding the small, moonlit grove shifting in the gentle night zephyr. 

Of course, despite all this peacefulness, Tommy couldn't help but take everything around him as a challenge. Therefore, without little hesitation, he began to pull himself up one of the trees that had been closer to him. It was stockier than some of the other oak trees around the area, but it still proved itself to be difficult to climb.

As Tommy pulled himself up from branch to branch, he found himself relying on purely muscle memory. He had fond memories of doing this kind of thing when younger, and honestly... it had felt somewhat liberating to be able to indulge in this nostalgia.

Of course, one can only imagine how long this sense of peace lasted.

One moment, Tommy was reaching up for another branch like he had been doing for the past few minutes. The next, after a sharp _SNAP_ came from the branch he had been reaching for, he found himself on the ground. Luckily, he had gotten caught on some branches on the way down (hence why his abdomen was searing with pain), plus he hadn't climbed up too high by that point, so it seemed unlikely that he had truly broken any bones.

Still, he'd be lying if he tried to say that there wasn't at least some bruised bones.

Upon recalling all the events that had led up to this, Tommy sighed, tempted to just close his eyes. Maybe, he could just fall asleep, and see what happens when he wakes up? After all, he was way too far from home to walk back in this state. What could he even do? Call the police, or an ambulance?

He immediately squandered the idea. The situation wasn't dire enough to call anyone like that.

Of course, he _could_ just call his parents, and tell them where he was so they could pick him up...

His thoughts flashed to the dull ache in his shoulder and on his cheek. The sensations of pain had been there long before Tommy had gone plummeting from the tree. The reminder was enough for him to realize calling his parents would probably be a bad idea.

After a few moments of debating with himself, he shifted his position so he was putting his weight on his elbows. He groaned from the pain it caused in his ribs, and his head as he was forced to pick it up.

As bad as the pain was, he couldn't bring himself to feel truly upset. He had brought this upon himself, hadn't he? He had wandered as far away as he possibly could from his home, before climbing a tree and ending up injured.

He really wasn't in the position to be mad or upset at anything. Except for himself.

He fished his phone out of his pocket, thankful that his hands hadn't been hurt much in his fall. Due to his new position with his elbows on the ground, he quickly unlocked his phone.

He glanced at the time, wincing upon realizing that it read, clear as day: _2:21 AM_.

He opened up his messenger, quickly skimming over his contacts. His parents, of course, were out of the picture. He had decided that fairly quickly. People like Wilbur and Phil lived too far away for him to want to consider bothering them.

He paused when he scrolled down to see Tubbo's contact. The boy had moved fairly recently to live a town over from Tommy. 

Tommy grit his teeth, quickly going to check the map app. After a few moments of squinting at what the screen read for where he was, he sighed upon realizing that he wasn't far from where Tubbo's new home was.

He chewed on his lip, which was already coated with blood from both his fall, as well as his previous chewing.

He went over his options once more. He didn't want to bother his friend, but... what other option did he have? He couldn't think of anyone else that lived nearby.

Pushing aside his doubt and worry, he quickly opened up his and Tubbo's messages. He cleared his mind of all hesitations for just that moment, so he could send a message.

_hey, are u awake??_


	2. 2

_hey, r u awake?_

The moment the message was sent, he felt a heavy stone of regret settle within him. Even if Tubbo did respond, how would Tommy explain his situation? He couldn't imagine describing how he had gotten to this point to his friend if prompted.

He let his head settle on the ground again, squeezing his eyes open and shut as he, once again, considered just going to sleep and not having to deal with this. Still, he figured that trying to get up and leave, even if it meant having to walk, would be better than being found passed out by some passerby visiting the park.

The chilly night air seeped through his clothing, causing him to shiver violently. Everything somehow felt much colder than it had just a few minutes prior (maybe it was because he was laying on the ground, or because he hadn't moved). He was still gripping onto his phone, the device being the only thing around him that was warm. His lip and jaw quivered- whether it was because he wanted to cry, or whether it was because of the cold, he didn't know himself and didn't want to think too much into.

Tommy had been lulled into a daze by the time his phone vibrated.

The sharp sound emitted from the small device rang around the silent park, startling Tommy enough to drop his phone. The moment he recovered from his shock, he scrambled to grab his phone from where it lay atop the fallen leaves. With little a thought, he opened up the notification.

_yeah do you need any thing?_

Tommy hands started shaking. He hadn't planned up to this point. He bit harshly on one of his thumb's cuticles, slowly going to type out a response.

_tommy: im in a bit of a tight situation right now_

_tommy: im not too far from your house_

_tubbo: how?_

_tommy: i can explain it later but i wanted to know if i could visit your house_

He bit harder on his thumb, drawing a thin line of blood from where his nail connected to the skin. Why was Tubbo taking longer to respond this time? This was a bad idea...

_tubbo: i guess?_

_tubbo: are you just gonna come over or do you want me to go outside_

_tommy: you know that park near your house??  
_

_tubbo: yeah_

_tommy: meet me at the entrance there if you can_

_tubbo: okay :)_

Tommy breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing the affirmation. He was lucky that Tubbo was usually awake at these weird hours... and that he was a good enough friend to be willing to leave his house this late.

 _Now for the hard part,_ Tommy realized. He wasn't sure how he'd be able to pick himself up onto his feet and walk over to the entrance of the park. At the very least, he didn't have to walk all the way over to Tubbo's house.

He returned his phone to his pocket, and shifted onto his stomach. He pushed his arms under himself, so he sat up onto his knees. His hands stung upon the contact with the leaves below him, rubbed raw from his previous climbing of the tree- not to mention the sharp pain that immediately struck his head upon moving it around.

He picked his head up further to get a better look at the tree next to him. After a few moments of consideration, he gripped hold of the bark, using the friction to shakily pull himself to his feet. He was still incredibly wobbly with his aching abdomen, and his head was ringing, but at the very least he could stand up.

He took a few moments to ground himself. He squeezed his eyes shut, swallowing down the bile in his throat. His breathing was shaky and ragged, but he figured that being able to breath deeply with little pain was a good sign.

He tightened his grip on the tree, reopening his eyes as he shifted around to look around the park once more.

He was still near the clearing of trees, seeing as the one he had fallen from had been one of the surrounding ones. He hobbled along, using the trees and branches around him as support to stay on his feet. The following few minutes was a blur as he absentmindedly made his way to where he had first entered the park.

Once he could clearly see it, he breathed (yet another) sigh of relief. 

_I just want to see someone._

_I just want to talk to someone._

_I just want to talk to him._

What he failed to notice, however, was that by the time he had reached the entrance, Tubbo was just about rounding the corner of the road that led up to the park. So naturally, he was surprised to suddenly hear his friend's voice from not far away.

"Tommy!" there were several rapid footsteps, giving the aforementioned boy enough time to turn to see his addressor. "What are you- what are you doing here?"

Tommy shivered again, gripping harshly onto the sleeves of his hoodie. _What am I supposed to tell him?_

"It's, um-" he fiddled with one of his hoodie strands. "This 'n that, y'know?"

Tubbo squinted his eyes, clearly confused. "No, I don't." 

Tommy laughed half-heartedly, shifting in his spot. "So, uh, can I go to your house? I know your parents are there, but I can be quiet."

Tubbo just continued to stare at his friend in obvious confusion. "Right... yeah, sure. Can you explain things... later, at least?"

The blond boy immediately nodded. "Yeah, yeah- I'm just not really in the uh- the right headspace to explain everything at the moment."

Brief hesitation. "Alright man," Tubbo shrugged. "Let's go. It's cold out."

Tommy found himself silently agreeing, the on and off chattering of his teeth a constant reminder.

Tommy nearly forgot his previous difficulties with walking. He had been leaning on a pole up to that point while he had waited for Tubbo. The moment he took a step forward, though, he stumbled forward. It took him a few moments to balance his weight without wobbling.

Tubbo appeared to be surprised. "Uh- are you okay?" 

Tommy remained silent, unsure how to reply. He wasn't quite willing yet to explain how he had ran all the way out of his town and then fallen out of a tree. Tubbo, however, seemed to take the lack of response as a loud enough answer.

Wordlessly, Tubbo walked over to Tommy, slinking his arm under Tommy's to help hold him up. Due to his much shorter height, it was a little awkward, but Tommy appreciated it nonetheless.

The walk to Tubbo's house was a silent one. Every so often, Tommy would stumble or grow particularly wobbly on his feet, only for Tubbo to quickly support his weight. 

It felt... good to have someone who had his back.

Once they arrived at the door, Tubbo stepped away from Tommy, quickly digging into his pocket to fish out the keyring he had. He fiddled with it for a few seconds, the clinking of the keys permeating the quiet night atmosphere. Once he found the correct key, he quickly inserted it into the lock and pulled open the door.

The moment Tommy stepped into the house, he was unable to admit how nice it was to be in the heated home. He lifted his hands to rub his nose in an attempt to warm it up, waiting for Tubbo to lock the door behind them.

The house itself was dark. Tubbo clearly hadn't consulted his parents before going out to search for Tommy.

"Can you make your way up the stairs?" Tubbo asked in a quiet voice, glancing at the stairwell in the hall over.

Tommy was very hesitant to the idea. Just walking was hard enough, but... he didn't want to overspend how much he could take from Tubbo. The boy had done nothing but be extremely accommodating to him, despite the suddenness of the situation. He didn't want to ask of too much.

"Eh, I should be fine," he rolled his shoulders in a partial shrug. "It has railings."

This seemed to be enough for Tubbo, because he quickly nodded and left for the other room. Tommy figured he was meant to go up the stairs to Tubbo's room.

He stood up sturdier. He had gotten more used to walking like this on the way back, so it wouldn't be too bad.

As he hobbled his way up the stairs, he remembered that Tubbo's family members were likely either asleep or laying in bed. He put extra effort into remaining quiet; he wasn't particularly eager to run into Tubbo's parents or sibling.

Once Tommy was atop the stairs, he glanced behind himself, feeling satisfied that he had been able to do that on his own. Without wasting another moment, he walked over to Tubbo's room and looked around.

He had only visited this house once, but it hadn't changed much since when he first came. He pinched the bridge of his nose, blinking rapidly as he thought over his situation.

He didn't notice Tubbo behind him until the light flicked on, lighting up the dim room. He turned around to see his friend, who now had a plate of food, water, and medical supplies in his hands. Tubbo set down all these things on his bed, before sitting down on the mattress and gesturing for Tommy to do the same.

As Tommy sat down on the bed, he grew nervous again. He fiddled with the front of his shirt, chuckling light-heartedly.

"So, uh- it's good to see you, Toby."

There was a brief quiet before Tubbo replied. "Likewise. But I'm a bit confused about... the circumstances." he gestured vaguely to Tommy.

"Yeah, uh," he ran a hand through his hair, not meeting his friend's eyes. "I fell out of a tree, big man!"

Tubbo's amused laughter filled the room as he put his hand to his mouth. "I- I'm sorry," he said between giggles. "I just- huh? How? Why?"

Tommy found himself grinning as well, glad to hear his friend's laughter. "I wanted to get away from my house, and ended up going... a little too far. And then I saw that park. And a tree. And, well- y'know..."

Tubbo nodded attentively as Tommy spoke, before moving the medical supplies closer. He got up to sit on his knees so he was taller than Tommy.

"You're bleeding," he frowned, his amusement forgotten. He quickly took the antiseptic wipe from the kit he had carried up, before gently pushing aside his hair to better inspect the source of blood. 

To be honest, Tommy hadn't even noticed that he was bleeding. He had registered that he had wounded his head, but not that it had broken skin or anything.

_I hope I didn't get a concussion..._

The thought was forgotten as he flinched somewhat when the wipe was pressed his temple, gently wiping away the blood and cleaning up the broken skin. He registered the urge to move away, knowing that this was probably best for him.

As he continued to clean up Tommy's head, Tubbo spoke up again. "If you don't mind telling me... why did you want to get away from home?"

Tommy put his thumb to his mouth, tasting the dried blood from when he had bitten it earlier. "Issue with parents... wanted to get away from them."

Tubbo paused in his movements, his brows furrowing. "Did they do anything?"

Tommy faintly touched his shoulder, feeling ghost pain from what had happened earlier. "Yeah. They did." His voice was quiet and shaky, to his own disgust.

Tubbo simply nodded, before placing gauze on the spot he had been cleaning and sitting back down. "Where else were you injured?"

Tommy hesitantly gestured to his chest and stomach, where he knew there was undoubtedly bad bruising. "I ran into branches while falling."

The room went quiet again, as Tubbo seemed to consider his next move. Tommy looked away, wondering if he should've just kept quiet about the bruising.

First surprise was when he felt warm arms wrap around him. Second surprise was when he felt himself immediately melting at the contact.

He sank into his friend's arms, burying his face into the shorter boy's shoulder. Tubbo quickly began rubbing circles onto his back, seeming unsure of how to help. Tommy just shook in place, gripping onto the back of Tubbo's shirt like it was a lifeline.

"It's okay to cry if you need to," he heard Tubbo mutter.

It was enough for him.

With another intense shudder, he felt warm tears start dripping from his eyes onto the crook of Tubbo's neck. He shifted his legs so they were folded on the bed, leaning further onto Tubbo.

Tubbo struggled somewhat under the weight of Tommy, but didn't speak up about it. He had to admit, he was surprised when he heard sniffling. Even if he had said that Tommy could cry, he didn't actually... expect it. After all, this was _Tommy_. When did he ever seriously cry?

"Breathe," he soothed the younger teenager. "It's okay to cry like this. I'm proud of you."

Tommy nodded rapidly, attempting to match Tubbo's breathing. His gasping and hyperventilating began to stop. He was still shaking, though, and salty tears were still rolling down his cheeks.

The two sat like this for a long period of time, until Tommy's eyes grew dry and the room grew completely silent again.

After this silence lasted for awhile, Tommy leaned away somewhat. His grip had loosened, and he felt a pit in his stomach.

"Tommy?" Tubbo spoke up after a few moments.

Tommy nodded in acknowledgement, turning his head so he could see Tubbo's face. 

"Would you like to stay here for a few days, at least until you've healed more? You can tell your parents in the morning."

Tommy thought over the offer. He figured that his parents would probably not want to deal with him being injured anyway. "... Yeah," he muttered. "I think that'd be best."

Tubbo nodded, before gently unlinking his arms from Tommy, and sliding off of the bed. "Eat the food I brought up here, and then go ahead and sleep. I can pull out a comforter for myself. I need to go talk to my parents about this first, though."

Tommy nodded, watching as his friend began to walk out of the room.

"Toby," he blurted, causing Tubbo to turn around.

"Yeah?"

"... thank you."

Tubbo smiled, infectious enough to bring a smile to Tommy's face as well. "Of course, man," he spoke earnestly. "We always have each other's back, right?"

Tommy's smile twisted somewhat. "Oh, c'mon, who are you, some sort of- some sort of adventure... fairy-tale... guy? That's cheesy as hell." His tease came out choppy and unsuccessfully.

Tubbo just laughed lightly. "Get rest," he resumed his leave of the room. "What will we do with the Big Man all battered like this?"

After Tubbo left the room, a few more silent tears slipped down Tommy's face, causing him to rapidly rub his already red eyes.

What had he done to deserve this?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ty for reading! any feedback is appreciated

**Author's Note:**

> please comment! i wanna know if i should try posting my writing more. also i'll be adding the second chapter tomorrow.


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